BOCA RATON, Fla. – (Nov. 6, 2019) – The Florida Atlantic University women’s basketball team will commence the 2019-20 season at Iowa tomorrow night with tipoff set at 7:30 p.m. This marks the first road opener for the Owls since 2014.
About the Owls:
Head coach Jim Jabir is in his third season at the helm, as his 2019-20 squad is made up of 11 newcomers and six returners. Jabir’s highly-touted recruiting class features seven true freshmen, two sophomores, one junior and a graduate transfer. The team has five returners who saw time on the court last season and are all sophomores. In the yearly preseason poll, the Owls were picked to finish 10th in Conference USA, as voted on by the league’s head coaches.
FAU is coming off the 2018-19 season with a 5-25 record with a team that tied for having a nation’s most eight true freshmen. The Owls’ leading scorer was Juliette Gauthier, who is back for her sophomore year after averaging 11.2 points per game in her rookie season. Returners Abby Voss and Glenisha Harkless also led the team in statistical categories during their freshman seasons with Voss at the top in rebounds with 5.9 per game and Harkless having 56 assists.
Last Time Out:
The Owls are coming off a convincing 91-65 victory over Nova Southeastern at Abessinio Court in the team’s exhibition last Saturday. FAU trailed in just the first two minutes of the game and never looked back. Crystal Primm recorded a game-leading 23 points (three 3-pointers) and nine boards to be just short of a double-double. Lotta Vehka-Aho followed with 21 points, as well as five assists and steals, a piece. Juliette Gauthier was the third Owl to reach double digits, tallying 18 points and six rebounds. Overall, the Owls were 10-21 from beyond the arc.
Scouting Iowa:
The Hawkeyes are coming off a 29-7 (14-4 B10) finish, which led them to a Big 10 Championship and Elite 8 birth where they would go on to lose to eventual National Champion, Baylor. Iowa received votes in the preseason AP and USA Today/WBCA Coaches polls, as well. During the past four seasons, the Hawkeyes were led by superstar Megan Gustafson, who had an array of national accomplishments, including AP Player of the Year and was the Naismith Trophy Winner, but she has since graduated from the program. Kathleen Doyle is the leading returner, having averaged 12.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game last year, while Mackenzie Meyer ended the season averaging 9.2 points and 4.2 assists per game. Head coach Lisa Bluder is going into her 20th season as the head coach of the Hawkeyes and is the all-time winningest coach in program history, four games away from 400 wins at Iowa.
Last Time Against the Hawkeyes:
It has been 25 years since the Owls and Hawkeyes have squared off. The only matchup between the two teams fell in Iowa’s favor, as they defeated the Owls, 67-42. The game was played at a neutral site for the Stephen F. Austin Classic held in Nacogdoches, Texas.
Upcoming:
The Owls will remain on the road next week, as they take a trip to the state of Virginia. FAU will play Hampton Thursday, Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. and Richmond on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 6 p.m.
FAU will hold their home opener on Tuesday, Nov. 19 against Siena at 7 p.m. For tickets, call 1-800-FAU-OWLS or visit FAUSports.com.
Owls on Social Media:
For complete coverage of FAU women’s basketball, follow us on Twitter (@FAU_WBB), Instagram (@FAU_WBB) and Facebook (Florida Atlantic Women’s Basketball).
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Florida Atlantic University Athletics:
FAU Athletics is comprised of 21 intercollegiate teams involving 450 student-athletes that compete in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, indoor and outdoor track, volleyball, beach volleyball, cheer and dance. The Owls are a NCAA Division I-A (FBS) institution and compete in Conference USA and the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) (beach volleyball, men’s swimming). The Owls have been playing football since 2001 and are a perfect 3-0 in bowl games, the most recent being a 50-3 victory over Akron in the 2017 Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl. The dance team finished its 2014 season No. 8, nationally. FAU cheer won a national championship in 2016.
About Florida Atlantic University:
Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six county service region in southeast Florida. FAU’s world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of critical areas that form the basis of its strategic plan: Healthy aging, biotech, coastal and marine issues, neuroscience, regenerative medicine, informatics, lifespan and the environment. These areas provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU’s existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit www.fau.edu.
